Jurispurdance Final - Lecture notes 13-14 PDF

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CHAPTER 14 - SENTENCING CAPITAL PUNISHMENT Gregg V Georgia ● Capital Punishment: the legally authorized killing of someone as punishment for a crime. ● Four years before Greg v. Georgia was Furman v. Georgia where the Supreme Court ruled that in Georgia whether a convicted murderer received the death penalty or imprisonment was arbitrary and thus, unconstitutional. ● Capital punishment was temporarily put on hold until Georgia and other ● states revised their procedures for determining when and under what circumstances a person was chosen to be sentenced to death. ● In Gregg v. Georgia the question before the SC was whether Capital Punishment is unconstitutionally administered and whether or not it is in violation of the 8th Amendment “cruel and unusual punishment” clause. Stewart, Powell and Stevens concurring: ● Robinson v. California : the court found that being addicted to a narcotic drug is not a criminal offense and it was determined that is would be “cruel and unusual” to impose any punishment for addiction. ● Two aspects of “excessiveness”: (1) the punishment must not involve the unnecessary and deliberate infliction of pain (2) the punishment must not be grossly out of proportion to the severity of the crime. ● Two social principles of the death penalty: Retribution  and  deterrence  of  capital crimes by prospective offenders. ● Retribution: This function is essential because it asks its citizens to rely on legal processes rather than trying to solve the situation themselves. ● Deterrence: The threat of the death penalty would deter future criminals from committing a crime. The effectiveness of deterrence has been inconclusive. ● Court Decision: the infliction of death as a punishment for murder is not without justification and thus is not unconstitutionally severe. Thus, the statutory system under which Gregg was sentenced to death does not violate the Constitution. The Judgement of the Georgia SC is affirmed. Justice Brennan, dissenting: ● A punishment must not be so severe as to be degrading to human dignity. ● It is a penalty that subjects the individual to a fate forbidden by the principle of civilized treatment guaranteed.

Justice Marshall, dissenting: ● In Furman he concluded that the death penalty is unconstitutional for two reasons: (1)  the  death penalty is excessive. Capital punishment is not necessary as a deterrent to crime in our society, and retribution does not prevent the American people from taking the law into their own hands. (2)  the  American people reject it as morally unacceptable. ● The death penalty is an excessive penalty forbidden by the 8t h and  14t h Amendments.  Electric Shock: The Fairest Punishment of All ● Newman argues that the administration of electric shocks to convicted criminals is a fairer and more effective form of punishment. ● For example: a mother is convicted and sentenced to a minimum of six months in jail. Her daughter would be turned over to the care of the Department of Youth. The child is about to be punished for the crime of having a guilty mother. ● Newman’s electric Shock theory: A judge will look at the average sentence for similar cases, and sentence the defendant to a certain number of electric shocks. Also, the victim of the crime is able to watch the administration of the punishment. ○ The defendant also receives a medical examination prior to receiving the electric shocks to establish that he is fit to receive the punishment. ○ After the defendant receives his or her painful jolts of electricity they are released. So, only the guilty person is punished. Measuring Differences in Response to Pain: ● Pain threshold: the  point on the scale of severity of the pain stimulus at which the person reports that he feels it as pain. As we increase the intensity of the painful stimulus the person will soon decide where along that scale to say stop. There are physiological reactions such as sweating and pupil dilation. ● Tolerance of pain: the  tolerance of pain refers to the time element in pain, or how long a person can withstand certain levels of pain. People may vary in the extent to which they can stand pain over time, and it has generally been found that the variations  in tolerance of pain are greater than the variations in pain threshold.

“THREE STRIKES” Rummel v. Estelle ● William James Rummel convicted of fraudulent use of credit card in ‘64, forging a check in ’69, and obtaining money under false pretenses in ’73; sums equal $80, $28.36, and $120.75. Texas has a “three strikes you’re out” statute, and the Supreme Court examines whether Rummel getting prison for life violates the 18t h Amendment  ban on “cruel and unusual punishment.”

Justice Rehnquist delivering opinion of court: ● Rummel sought habeas corpus in United Stated District Court for the Western District of Texas, arguing that life imprisonment was “grossly disproportionate” to the three felonies committed, therefore violating the 8t h and  14t h Amendments  ○ Claim was rejected by District Court and United States Court of Appeals for Fifth Circuit ○ Certiorari granted and now affirmed ○ Trial court imposed life sentence ● Rummel points out “pettiness” of his crimes ○ Lack of violence ○ “small” amount of money taken in each instance Justice Powell, Justice Brennan, Justice Marshall and Justice Stevens dissenting: ● Barbarous forms of punishment and grossly excessive punishments are cruel and unusual ● Relationship between the criminal acts and sentence is grossly disproportionate.

RACIAL BIAS IN SENTENCING McCleskey v. Kemp ● Warren McCleskey, who is black, convicted of murdering a white man. Baldus study shows that someone who kills a white person is 4.3 times more likely to get death penalty than those who kill someone who is black, showing that Georgia’s criminal justice system is racially biased and therefore, denied McCleskey equal protection of the law. Justice Powell delivering opinion of the Court: ● Petitioner relies solely on the Baldus study and does not provide/offer any evidence showing that racial considerations played a role in his case ● McCleskey contends that the Georgia capital punishment system is arbitrary and capricious in an application, t herefore sentence is excessive ● Professor Baldus does not contend that his statistics prove t hat race enters into any capital sentencing decisions ○ Baldus study indicates discrepancy that appears to correlate with race ○ Baldus study does not demonstrate a constitutionally significant risk of racial bias affecting the Georgia capital-sentencing process Justice Brennan dissenting: ● Court holds that McCleskey sentence was constitutionally imposed ○ Baldus study does not prove that race was a factor in the decision-making

CHAPTER 15 - CRIMINAL RESPONSIBILITY

SURVIVAL ON A LIFEBOAT The Queen V Dudley and Stephens Facts: ● ● ● ●

Dudley, Stephens, Brooks, and Parker, crew members on a yacht, were cast adrift 1600 miles from land in an open lifeboat. After 12 days, they were out of food. Dudley and Stephens suggested to Brooks that one person might have to be sacrificed to save the others. Brooks dissented. Without consulting him, Dudley and Stephens killed Parker on day 20. They were rescued 4 days after the murder; they would have all died if they had not fed off of Parker's remains.

Holding/Rule: ● ●

Homicide may not be excused when the person killed is an innocent and unoffending victim. Death sentences commuted to six months' imprisonment.

Reasoning: ● ● ●



The victim did not assault or endanger the killer. He had no control over the circumstances leading to starvation. The extreme necessity of hunger cannot justify larceny, let alone murder. The preservation of one's own life is a duty, but sometimes one must sacrifice it....